Trials of the Heart
by Oathkeeping
Summary: The Sinnoh League is over and done with, so Ash and the gang are ready to go back to the place where the whole story began: the Kanto region! However, in this new journey, Ash has to first realize the truth of what's hidden in his heart.


Chapter I: Return to Kanto

After many months of traveling and hard work, Ash Ketchum and his friends were finally returning to Pallet Town, all the way to Kanto. There was one thing that was good about the journey back home — the fact that he had friends by his side... for now. The three of them would soon head their separate ways, but he first had to show Dawn his hometown, and maybe even more, before she left on her journey.

"We're almost here, Dawn!" Ash cried out happily, pointing out the region which he called his home. He was excited to show off all the places in Kanto - okay, maybe not _all_ of them - but still, he wanted Dawn to see some of the beautiful cities in this region before they finally arrived in Pallet Town. After all, his mother Delia had invited the three of them over for a welcome back party.

Chuckling happily in response, Dawn gave a small smile. "Wow it _really_ is nice." And the fact that the wind was blowing in her hair felt nice as well. She was almost tempted at one point of the trip to go to the edge of the boat and shout out loud as her heart wanted to in joy, but she managed to stop herself. Besides, Piplup might have fallen off if she did that, even if he was a water-type and could swim. She turned to Brock, the third constant in their travels in Sinnoh. "Hey, Brock, how much longer until we get there?"

Brock pondered on the question for a few seconds before taking out the Pokégear and looking at the map to estimate the amount of time that it would take for everyone to get all the way back to Ash's home - or at least to Kanto's finest port. "It should be around thirty minutes left. Don't worry about it too much, guys. The weather is really nice out today, and from what I've heard, Viridian City's port has been doing fine."

Ash was really excited about going back home. He wanted to tell his mother _everything_. About his rivals, travels — the problems he had with both Team Rocket and Team Galactic, and the friends he made. It was all life changing for him, and he had learned so much from everyone. He had learned to see things more clearly and think in different ways as well. "Alright! First we're going from Viridian City to Pewter City, then we can head off to Cerulean City to see if Misty's there after passing Mt. Moon, and then we can go back to Pallet!" Ash then looked at Brock with anticipation. It was true that he had family to take care of, but Ash also knew that Brock's true dream was to become the ultimate breeder. "Brock, you're still coming with us for the party, right? 'Cause you just _have_ to come! If you don't, mom might be upset that one of my best buds didn't arrive and...you know how mom is!" He gave a small, nervous laugh, as if he didn't want to say anything about the topic at all whatsoever.

"I'll be there, Ash. I told you that I would," Brock said, giving Ash a hard pat on the back. "That's what friends are for, after all." Ash then gave his fellow friend a sheepish grin, but it was one that showed that they had a strong bond that could never be taken away.

Soon enough the bells of the ship began to ring, which made the three of them jump back in surprise. "Do not be alarmed, everyone. We will be arriving in Viridian City in a couple of minutes." They all gave a sigh in relief, thanking the heavens for the fact that it wasn't an attack from another ship, or even worse: Team Rocket.

"...So that's Viridian City?" Dawn asked, mostly out of pure curiosity.

Ash nodded in reply. "Yeah! It's right next to the Viridian Forest, so it's not too big, but it's definitely way bigger than Pallet Town, that's for sure. Not that I mind the size of Pallet, you know?"

Her eyes widened in awe. Kanto was beautiful, and she was going to enjoy going around the whole region for all her contests. It was exiting her old world and entering a whole new one. And she was going to leave two of her biggest friends by doing so, even though she didn't mind it too much. On this new journey, she would meet more people and make a whole bunch of new friends. "It's amazing, Ash. If that's Viridian City, I really can't wait to see your hometown."

Ash laughed bashfully. "Thanks, Dawn. You're...a really great friend."

Dawn waved her hand in disagreement. "You aren't alone Ash. Just remember that. No need to worry, alright?"

Giving a huge grin of confidence, Ash didn't say anything, because he was a just a little bit embarrassed that his best friend had complimented his _home town,_ **and** on the fact that he was a good friend. They stood in silence, just smiling at each other.

"Sorry to interrupt you both, but...look, guys. There it is: Viridian City." Brock pointed out. This was both an exciting and a breathtaking moment. Ash was finally going back home, and Dawn was arriving at a brand new region that she soon would get to know much better. And plus, there was someone who Ash wanted Dawn to meet, and it was a good friend of his.

A _very_ good friend of his that he had traveled with for a long time.

The smile was still on Ash's face, but it wasn't one that he was wearing out or overusing. It was a smile of excitement, and the fact that he would get to meet his old friends once again. He was going to reunite with all the people he got close to, and they were going to party like there was no tomorrow. It was a feeling like he had never felt in a long time.

"We have finally arrived at Viridian City. Thank you for riding, and please have a safe trip in Kanto!" came the captain's voice, the boat finally stopping at the port.

Jumping up and clapping his feet together, Ash immediately began to storm off happily. "Yahoo! We're finally here!" Ash at this moment was one of the most excited people in the entire region. He loved traveling, but there was no place like home.

Dawn laughed a tiny bit. Sure, Ash was ecstatic about arriving back home, but he didn't have to be this pumped up. "Geez, Ash! Wait for us," she called out, racing after him.

"But you're going to miss everything if you don't hurry, Dawn!" he responded, grinning. His Pikachu was even quite excited as well. After all, they were at Viridian City, the place where most, if not all, Pikachu were born. It gave a small, but cheerful squeak of, "Pikaa!" in reply.

"Okay, but if we get lost, it'll be all your fault, Ash."

It was then and there when the young trainer stopped in his tracks. "Heh, I guess you're right. I haven't been in this area since I was last here a few years ago."

All of them gave a sigh of relief. Thank _goodness_ that Ash didn't decide to just take off. "To get to Cerulean City, we'll have to pass through the Viridian Forest first, it seems." Ash clenched his fist happily, because he knew what the Viridian Forest meant to his pal.

"Pikachu, we can see all your friends again!" Ash smiled, remembering that coming through here was going to be a really exciting journey back home. Sure, they probably wouldn't reach home that quickly, but still...he was going to have a huge party with all of his friends!

Dawn was really surprised at this, though. "Pikachu, you were born in the Viridian Forest?" Giving an awkward laugh, Pikachu responded with a, "Pi..." It was entirely true, which was why when Pikachu had first met Ash, they had a lot of troubles, but they soon made up. Pikachu was taken away from his home in order to become a _pet_ for a future trainer. However, Ash managed to become good friends with Pikachu and even began to connect his heart with his Pokémon.

Dawn clasped her hands together, happily. "That's great, then! You get to see your friends again!"

"It's been so long since we've seen those guys, after all," Brock stated, having been one of Ash's companions since the very beginning.

Ash nodded. "Yeah...I almost left Pikachu when I saw him so happy," It was nostalgic just to remember those days. It had been _way_ too long since he was in this area, after all. "Hey, guys! Let's keep on going, okay?" Ash began to run towards the entrance of the forest, waving to his two friends to hurry up, and keep on going. "We need to get to Cerulean City by this afternoon if we want to see Misty!"

Dawn knew who Misty was, but she had no idea that she was one of Ash's friends until he actually told her during the trip back to Kanto. "Ash...we'll get there in no time, no need to worry." She laughed a little bit, thinking that Ash was acting like a little child who wanted to see an older sister that he missed.

At that, Ash stopped in his tracks, laughing a bit in embarrassment. "Yeah, I guess you're right. But the Pikachu might be gone if we don't hurry, though!"

"Alright, then. Let's go. I have the Pokégear, so that will make sure that we won't get lost." Brock said, immediately taking out the blue Pokégear, placing its setting to the map. Everyone soon gathered around the Pokégear in order to see the Kanto map. "Alright everyone. We're _here_," he pointed at the entrance to the Viridian Forest, "and we need to get _here_ to see the Pikachu, and then _here's_ the exit."

The two of them nodded and then stopped leaning in towards their friend. "Okay, let's go, everyone! To see the Pikachu!"

"Yeah!" the rest of them began to run towards the forest, all of them wearing excited smiles on their faces. Soon enough, they were already in the depths of Kanto's famous forest - the _Viridan Forest_. Once they had entered it, everything became silent, the only noises that were heard being the many birds living there.

Dawn looked both left and right in amusement, staring at all the greenery. "Wow...it's really nice, but it's also a bit spooky."

Ash chuckled slightly. It was true. Several times he had gotten into quite some trouble...most of the trouble was because he was always getting lost. "Don't worry, we'll be fine. After all, we got the Pokégear! Brock, is it still working?" He _really_ didn't want to get lost now, especially when they were going to a special party - his.

"It still is. We should head towards the west," came the reply from the breeder. "That's where the group of Pikachu should be, I believe."

Clenching his fist excitedly, he looked back at his partner with a smile. "We're almost there, buddy! Just a few more minutes, and you'll meet your old friends." Pikachu squealed back cheerfully, "Pii, pika!"

Dawn laughed and patted Pikachu on the head, making the little mouse squeal happily. Dawn then placed Piplup on top of her hat, allowing it to rest for a bit. "Okay, so let's go. They're _that_ way, right?" she pointed to the left, knowing that she was definitely right.

"_No,_" Ash retorted, "they're _this_ way, Dawn! Weren't you paying attention to what Brock said? He said 'west', not 'east'. So it's towards the _right_!"

"Guys..." Brock attempted, trying to stop the two of them from fighting, but they just continued on. It didn't matter to them though, because each time they would argue, it would end eventually. Hopefully, they wouldn't end up getting _lost_ because of this argument, which wouldn't be a good thing at all.

"If you want us to get lost, Dawn, then _go ahead_!" Ash shouted angrily. It wasn't that he hated Dawn, but the fact that she was going to head in the wrong direction was a bad thing.

Huffing and crossing her arms, she cried back, "_You're_ the one going the wrong way, Ash! That's obvious, since you always get us lost!"

The breeder sighed in disbelief, going in between his two younger companions. "You guys, stop it. It's this way," he pointed out, now deciding to lead the group and walk in the right direction. "I'll lead the way, so could you two please stop arguing?"

Both the coordinator and trainer bowed their heads in apology. "Sorry," they said, regretting having to argue in the first place.

"Alright. Let's get a move on, then."

Nodding confidently, they began to follow Brock through the thick forest, moving bushels and branches out of their way every once in a while. Sometimes they even had to bend down in order to get through and pass the area.

After several minutes of that, they finally began to hear a sound that sounded like singing. In fact, it wasn't ordinary singing at all.

Pikachu jumped off of Ash's shoulder, standing on its two feet to show that it was indeed the band of Pikachu that they had met before that were singing that special song. It was as if they had noticed that one of their comrades was returning back home.

"Hey, Pikachu. You remember when I almost left you here with the other Pikachu?" Ash wondered aloud. The little guy nodded with a small smile, crying out, "Pikaa!" It really was nostalgic, and brought a lot of memories.

Brock gave a hearty laugh as well. "I remember that all too well. All the Pikachu in that area ended up cheering for you too, since they knew that you two were the best of friends, after all."

With a thumbs up in reply, Ash just said, "Yeah. Now that I think back on it, it was silly of me. I should've let Pikachu decide if he wanted to leave or not, huh, buddy?" Pikachu gave a small squeal in reply. "Those were the days..."

"Wow, you guys really must have a lot of good stories to tell." Dawn laughed.

Ash nodded, for it was entirely true. "Hey, maybe we can exchange stories during the party." He then gave a small, embarrassed laugh, recalling all the events that happened to him in Kanto. Some of them were actually _quite_ embarrassing to tell the truth. Though he always had fun and made many new friends during his journey. "It'll be really fun!"

Brock agreed with this as well. "Yeah, it would be nice to tell stories about our adventures. But first, we need to get to Pallet Town."

"All right then, let's go see the Pikachu first, guys," Dawn said with a huge grin on her face. The rest of them nodded, walking slowly towards the sound of music that all the Pikachu were making.

Ash's Pikachu began racing towards the others of his kind, while the three of them walked up to the group of Pikachu slowly attempting not to frighten them.

"Pikachu!" Ash's Pikachu cried out, greeting all the others with an exchange of tail-shakes. "Pika-pika!" It was really nice to see the others once again. "Hey guys, remember us?"

All the other Pikachu smiled in reply. "Pikapi!" It was obvious that they recognized Ash and Brock. However, they tilted their head in confusion, realizing that Misty wasn't there and was "replaced" by some other girl. "Pii?" they questioned, asking who this new girl was.

Dawn pointed at herself, asking if they meant her, and it was obvious that the answer was yes, in Pokéspeak, of course. "I'm Dawn; it's really nice to meet you all. I'm a friend of Ash and Pikachu over there."

All the Pikachu were a bit nervous about meeting a new human, but one of the smaller ones ended up running towards Dawn in curiosity. "Pikachu?" Dawn laughed slightly, bending down to their height. "That's right; I won't hurt you, Pikachu."

In order to make the Pikachu trust her, she had to make her heart be in sync with the others, even if it's just a little bit. "Here," she said, offering up a poffin. The Pikachu then bobbed its heard to the right, wondering what the poffin is. "You can eat it," came the answer that the little mouse rodent had been looking for.

"Look, Ash's Pikachu likes it!" Dawn said, walking over to him in order to give a poffin, which in turn, made Ash's first Pokémon squeal happily. "Piika!" Chuckling happily, Dawn was just glad that her best friend's Pokémon was delighted with the poffin that she made.

All the Pikachu gathered around Dawn, wanting to try her poffins. "Okay, line up everyone. I have enough for all of you!" All the Pikachu nodded in reply, immediately going into one straight line. Thankfully, she didn't have Mamoswine out of its Pokéball, or else the wrath of over one hundred Pikachu would go to her. And that was something that she didn't want.

One by one, she gave each Pikachu a poffin for them to eat, hoping that they too would like it. "Here you go!" she said to each of the Pikachu. As soon as all of them got their poffins, she looked back at Brock to ask, "I think it's time for lunch, don't you?"

Brock nodded in reply, taking out his backpack and placing it on the floor in order to take out some food that they would prepare. "Alright, we'll need to get some firewood so we can light up a fire. Dawn, if that's alright with you; can you get some for us? Ash, let out Infernape for a second so we can light up the fire."

"Right! I'll come back soon, okay?" Dawn called out, watching the Pikachu nibble on their poffins. She then decided to approach them to ask some questions, seeing if they could help her before she went off to get some firewood for camp.

Ash then pulled his shirt up slightly in order to take ou Infernape's Pokéball. Pressing the button in the middle to allow the Pokéball to grow to its regular size, he threw it up in the air, calling, "Infernape, I choose you!" After those words were said, the fire monkey came out, ready for anything. "Infernape, we're going to help out, okay?" The Pokémon gave a smirk in reply, saying that it was definitely alright for him to help. Ash then smiled as well, giving a thumbs up.

Several moments later, Dawn came back with a whole bunch of branches on her arms, while Piplup was holding some in his arms as well. "I'm back! The Pikachu helped me find some firewood, see?" She lifted her arms up before managing to place everything on the ground.

"Alright! Infernape, use Flame Thrower!" Ash called, pointing at the firewood. The blazing fire-type nodded after a few howls, then blew fire out of his mouth to light the campfire that they would use in order to cook their lunch.

Brock then took out the sticks with the barbecued meat on it and passed it to each trainer. "Here, just place it over the fire for a bit and it should be ready to eat. Also..." he said, looking back at the group of Pikachu, "they seem to like your poffins a lot."

Dawn gave a sheepish laugh, embarrassed by that fact. "T-Thanks, Brock. I'm just glad that they liked it in the first place." She then looked at the Pikachu who seemed very happy to have companions, especially old one who they trusted. After all, the Pikachu didn't have much contact with humans in the first place, so basically, Ash and Brock were their first human friends in a long, long time.

"After this, we'll set off for Pewter, guys." Brock said.

The two of them gave a huge grin in reply, nodding. "Yeah!"

TO BE CONTINUED

Author's Notes: This fanfiction was actually inspired by another one that my friends showed me, and I thought that it was actually a pretty neat concept and decided to write this! I want to give a huge thanks to my beta-reader, Chloe (serenemuffin at LJ) and to all my fellow roleplayers on LJ for giving me the idea to write fanfiction once again. Thanks a whole bunch for reading, and I hope you all review it!


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